This is indeed a sad day I still remember sitting at my house I was chatting with a friend online and I had good morning america on. I looked at the tv and they had video of plane flying into the tower and I swear I thought it was a clip of a movie. It was scary I went and got my kids from school because I just needed to have them close. I then emailed my sister who works in Cleveland for the Department of Justice and thankfully she was fine. It was all so humbling.

Can you believe neither of my 2 younger children's schools said a darn thing about it today. They are 13 and 10 and both commented on it. I get the impression it was a system wide edict, as only one of my 8th grader's teachers had something on the board. We talked about it and decided maybe the admin felt it might be hard for some of the students. I'm a bit disappointed to tell the truth, you cannot just pretend it didn't happen just because it may upset someone. Our soldiers are fighting for our freedom and no one said anything. It's yet another missed opportunity by the school, and I'm glad my kids see that. We live just outside of Boston, so it's very close to home....I just don't get it.

I was sitting in our house watching Fox news at 0400 in the morning. (Alaska) and as I watched they broke the news .... Emergancy alert.... than by 0600 our fighter plains were in the air circeling overhead our home and town. It was one of the scariest moments I have lived through. we didn't know what was going to come next. I think that is what bothered me the most.

3 kids (one year after our 2nd oldest had passed away) in our home and us not knowing what was going to hapen next....

I will never forget those that died that day or the ones that have given thier lives since. I thank each and ever one of them.Jenn

I was actually working in lower Manhattan at the time, five minutes on foot from the Towers. The cell phones were dead, and I could not get in contact with anyone till after noon. Later in the evening, I listened to frantic messages from all my family members. Till this day, if I get peeved with any of them, I just recall those phone messages.

It still hurts so much...too much. Never again, and we'll never bend our necks to appease those who hate our freedom!I'm proud to be the daughter, granddaughter and great-granddaughter of American Veterans wounded in foreign wars, and my prayers go up for our troops!

I was 11 when it happened, and most of it I think went over my head. It was sad and depressing but it didn't really effect my world so much. But I am pretty sure that Sept. 11 and 12 '01 I won't forget. Good picture.

I was at my daughter's school today, and her teacher talked about today being Patriot Day and that being a patriot means loving, serving, and defending your country. Then the class wrote a letter to the dad of one of the kids in the class who is currently serving in Iraq. I thought it was very appropriate, and I was glad they could commemorate the day without recalling anything scary or sad, which would have been inappropriate for 2nd graders.

I love Alan Jackson's 9/11 song. When I heard it for the first time, I hadn't yet cried about the events of that day. I was in my car alone, and I just sobbed. I still can't hear it without getting teary-eyed.

Those towers were a part of our landscape.Just this year I learnt about the loss of a friend from college, totally on accident as I was googling, his memorial page came up. It's like it happened yesterday, I picture his friends and family searching for him, praying he was just "lost". Truly horrific. Never forget. Forever a jersey girl.

It was my day off and I was in bed taking a nap when it happened. My husband was at a friends house and saw it on tv and so called me. He told me to turn on the tv and when I asked what channel, he said any channel and I could not figure out what he was talking about. When I turned on the tv I saw one of the planes going thru the tower and I sort of chuckled, thinking that it was some stupid 'B' rated thriller movie. I then was wondering why all of the stations played that scene again and again and I went into shock when I realised that it was real.I will never forget that day.

I, too, thought it was a clip of a new movie, an Arnold Schwarzenegger action flick, maybe?

I was home, hugely pregnant with Baby #3, and making the bed, just a normal morning with Matt, Katie, Al & Anne. It took me a while to grasp what was happening, and when I called my kids' school they told me they were on lock down and no one was going in or out. I can still remember how all the hair on my arms and the back of my neck was standing up.

Our school is PS3 to 8th grade and they have a policy of not mentioning it, for fear of upsetting the littler ones who don't really understand. We do discuss it at home though.

My mother called me from Florida that morning to see if I was watching the news (I wasn't). My father had worked in the World Trade Center years back, and she'd just heard about the first plane hitting the tower. I ran to turn on the TV. At the time, my husband worked (office in our house) as a manager for a major telecommunications business. His office phone, cell phone and pager all started going off at the same time, and he ran to his office to get on a conference call. I was absorbed in the TV, and was watching when the 2nd plane hit, and ran to tell him and his on-the phone co-workers..... stunned disbelief...... And as I continued to watch, our local station put a small inset video of another location smoking, and the national broadcaster said something like "I think that's a view from Central Park in NY"; I thought to myself, "no, that looks like downtown DC" (we only live a few miles outside of DC). And sure enough, found out a few minutes later that it was the Pentagon. Such shock and numbness...... I remember walking out onto my deck in the afternoon -- I felt like I hadn't taken a breath in 5 hours and I needed to get away from the TV...... And the silence was unbelievable..... We live with a major north-south railroad line behind our neighborhood, and we are right in the flight path to a major airport -- and NOTHING was moving.... even the highway was quiet.... it was so eery... That's the biggest thing I remember from that day -- the absolutely feeling that the world had come to a stop.....

Thank for acknowledging this day Dawn. This is the first year in 7 yrs that I haven't actually DREADED the anniversary. Maybe the pain is healing some, but I will still never forget the horror of that day and knowing that I was watching thousands of people die on live TV in front of me, as those buildings crumbled. As we sat in the office crowded around the TV, I was shocked when my boss saw me cry and asked if I knew someone in the buildings. As if I needed to personally know someone to cry at that scene?

Has it been 7 years?? I remember dropping my daughter off at kindergarten, coming home and turning on the TV. I was in the kitchen making my breakfast when I could hear Matt Lauer's voice saying something about the World Trade Center and "a terrible accident" there. I ran into the living room and didn't walk away from the TV until 11:30 when I had to pick my daughter up from school. It was all over the radio and, as one of the other comments said, everything was eerily quite outside. Practically no one was talking when I got to the school. All of us just grabbed our "babies" and hugged them close. I remember as I watched Katie, Matt, Al and Ann that morning that things will never be the same again. Boy, I didn't realize how right I was on that terrible day.

May God bless all of the people that were lost that day and their brave family members.

Even on our top half of Northern America, we saw it happen on TV. I remember watching Regis and Kelly when the first plane hit the towers. I called my hubby at work and their whole office stopped, watching in horror as our friednly US neighbours got a devastating event unfold in their New York town.

Thanks Dawn, very appropriate for this day! I live in a flight path to the airport in my town and the skies were so creepy, eerie quiet that day and a couple after that. And everytime an F-16 did fly over it was very heart wrenching knowing that this wasn't a monthly drill, they were up there because we, as a nation, were being attacked.

I was in the labor and delivery room in labor. We had the tv on the Today show when they broke in and said a plane hit the trade center. Then we saw the second one hit.

Not long after that time my labor wasn't going as planned, and they had to do a c-section.

I remember the doctors talking about it while they were operating on me! I kept thinking that they better pay attention to what they are doing!

At 10:28 am we welcomed our son into this world.

So, happy 7th birthday Cale!

My husband said it best on that day:"September 11, 2001 is a day that many will remember as the darkest day in America's history. Lives were lost, families were shattered, and a nation wondered, "Why us?" But through all the grief and despair, for at least one couple in Houston, Texas, it was a time to rejoice. In God's infinite wisdom, during a nation's dark time, He brought forth a small beacon of hope and joy to that couple, and their family, friends, and co-workers when they needed it most.. At 10:28am, Cale Eric was brought into the world, and all of the bad things disappeared.

The happy couple is now a family, and they are filled with hope and joy as they race into the future carrying their greatest ambition in their arms.

I remember where I was 7 years ago, watching the plane hit the second tower as my daughter, then 15 months old, ran around playing as if nothing bad was going on in her world. I was glad she was too small to understand then. She gets it now. She had an outfit in mind for yesterday and I told her she had to wear red, white and blue. When she asked why I tried to touch on what happened that day in a way that didn’t scare her or her 5 year old brother too badly. We talk about how our troops are over seas to keep us safe. She has a respect for the military and what they are doing for us but didn’t make the connection about their families until today.

I have a USA playlist on my computer that I try to play on July 4th, Memorial Day, Labor Day, & 9-11. I started the play list, yesterday, and went about my morning. I went outside to hang our flag and my 8 year old daughter came running outside (with her comfort animal in her arms). She was sobbing; I looked at her and immediately, in mom fashion, thought what did her little brother do to her now?She ran to me and I hugged her and she hugged me and I asked what was wrong. She yelled at me “Don’t play that song again, why did you have to play that song.” We just stood there on our front lawn crying together. I was remembering 9/11/2001 and she was just realizing that our military men and women have families at home that are missing them.

I immediately knew which song she was talking about, “I’m already there” by Loanstar is on my play list. This version has military wives, children, and families sending good wishes to the troops. I still can’t listen to the song without tearing up. Once I composed myself we talked about it some more. The end of the song has a child saying “hi Dad, I hope you’re safe and come home soon”. That is what got my daughter so emotional, another child not having his/her mom or dad at home in the USA, their parents are keeping us all safe from far away.

God Bless all our troops and their families that are making this sacrifice for us.

Never Forget the lives lost 9/11/2001 and the families left behind who miss their loved ones every day.

I remember that morning well. I was 6 months pregnant with my second child. My husband, an officer in the USAF, was at the Pentagon that morning. We had children’s shows on the television, and so I was blissfully unaware of the morning’s events. My mother-in-law called to ask if Mike was at the Pentagon that morning and I replied he was, did she need him for something. There was a significant pause. Just as I began to wonder if something was wrong, there was a call on the other line. I clicked over, and it was my husband. He told me “I’m OK. We’re evacuating. Call my parents and turn on CNN.” He then hung up before I had a chance to answer him. As I reassured my mother-in-law, there was a knock at the door. My neighbors (we lived in base housing) were coming to check on me and sit vigil until I heard from Mike. I thank God that he was safe, and able to assure me of his safety before I even knew to be worried. The roads were all a mess, and cell phone service was a non-existent. He finally made it home safely after 10:00pm that night.

I also was in the hospital labor and delivery room in labor on 9/11. I was induced and delivered our son naturally with an epidural at 12:44 P.M. that afternoon. For the rest of the time I was in the hospital, I looked out the window, where you could see the flight paths to our airport, and it was clear blue skies and no , and not a hint of white contrail from planes. It was very surreal. I will never forget because of where I was when the world stopped turning. Thanks to Alan Jackson for that wonderful song. Never Forget and United We Stand. He had a wonderful birthday yesterday and understands a little bit as his older sister does a little too. Maybe when they are older, they will be able to comprehend what happened that day.

In addition to remembering that day, I think it's also important to remember that our country has been safe from terrorist attacks for the past 7 years, thanks to the immediate and ongoing response of our president, other leaders, and especially our military.

Hi Dawn,No complaints about your post, but just want to put a different spin on the day: September 11 is also my daughter's birthday; she was 8 in 2001. At the time, I was doubly angry that the terrorists would not only do such a heinous thing, but also ruin my daughter's special day! Here's the remarkable thing: American Girl sent out a mailing, at their own expense, of a personal letter and a set of books, specifically for girls with a September 11 birthday. I think while we remember the losses, it's also good to remember those with birthdays, anniversaries and other happy events who shouldn't have to forfeit their "happy space" on that day. Sorrow and joy are close neighbors, eh?

1: To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 2: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; 3: A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4: A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5: A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 6: A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7: A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8: A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8)Lord, as we remeber the time of hate and war, fill our hearts with the hope of your love and peace. Amen

Hubby's company had just moved out of that section of the Pentagon a few weeks before the plane hit. He called me a few hours after the plane hit. Once they evacuated the building, he walked to Crystal city and they bussed people to the Arlington Cemetary metro. He called me from the Vienna metro station to drive in the 60 miles and pick him up, which I was happy to do. If things had gone differently, I would be mommeeof6.

I was teaching 8th grade the morning the planes hit. Many parents came to pick up their kids throughout the day. Each time a kid was called out of class, I looked to see where their parents' worked. Most of them where WTC. I prayed for each as they left the class. I remember hearing the jets fly over head. Administration decided not to tell the kids until they left school that day. And when we told them, the roughest and toughest kid in the school raised his hand and said "But everyone got out ok, right?". I just told him no, and that the world changed today, it is no longer the same.